Defeated Iranian candidate Mehdi Karroubi refused to recognize the Ahmadinejad's re-election after an electoral watchdog confirmed the results despite allegations of fraud, a statement on his Etemad Melli party website said on Wednesday. The statement prompted authorities to halt the publication of the party newspaper."Last night, after Karroubi's statement was released, representatives of the Tehran prosecutor and the culture ministry prevented the publication of Etemad Melli newspaper," the party said on its website. "They wanted the statement censored and not published -- so the newspaper will not be published today."
The newspaper is one of the few reformist publications to have survived a crackdown under Ahmadinejad's rule.
However, it chief editor Mohammad Ghoochani is among scores of reformist leaders and journalists detained in a crackdown by the authorities on opposition activists and protesters in the wake of the disputed election.